unLawful
by Metaphors and Miracles
Summary: Thirty years ago L fell and, with him, his justice was forced down into an unmarked grave. After L's diminish, different organizations had tried to obtain the ultimate power of rewriting the world under their own laws. AU Fanfic that focuses on Near and Mello.
1. Prologue

**A/N: I have finally decided to write a Fanfic focusing on Near and Mello- something I have wanted to do for a while now. The prologue simply has the part of setting the stage since this is an AU Fanfic and the world portrayed is original. Now without further ado, I hope you enjoy the Fanfic.**

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Prologue

Near sighed and leaned back into his chair while picking up a cluster of white locks from the back of his head and twirling them with his fingers.

He looked back at the repetitive text he had been reading throughout the biased history books. The only concrete information he could recognize as fact and not opinion was that thirty years ago L fell and, with him, his justice was forced down into an unmarked grave. After L's diminish, different organizations had tried to obtain the ultimate power of rewriting the world under their own laws. A single law-enforcement has not yet been achieved ergo leaving the world in a state of constant war and tension.

Near straightened his back while standing up. He scowled at the uselessness of the book and picked it up with the purpose of returning it back to its place on the shelf. He decided to leave his research for another day hoping next time it wouldn't be as fruitless.

Currently the competition of obtaining ultimate power was between Kira, the Mafia and the UN- the order highlights the group with most to least followers. So far, Near had found that Kira's justice was most comparable to L's. Both believed in judging people based on what was morally wrong- rape, murder, terrorist acts etc. Though, where L punished the culprits based on their crimes, Kira simply sentenced them to death. An abstract way of thinking about it is that L tried to make perfect people while Kira tries to make a perfect world.

Near took his leisured time walking across the large white library looking for the shelf that housed the inept book.

Where both Kira and L were looking out for people's benefit, the Mafia and UN simply wanted to become a super power that used the law to their own benefit. This does not go to say that Kira and L did not have ulterior motives. Kira wished to become God. Near was not completely sure of L's ulterior motive though he was sure he had one; L was human after all and a system under the rule of humans is inevitably corrupt.

Near brushed his fingers on the history books in the isle. All these books gave him a similar frustration to the one he got after reading the book he currently held loosely in his other hand.

Currently, all the different law systems held secret facilities. These facilities served purposes such as training people into becoming 'perfect' citizens, brainwashing people, training people to fight their competitors and planning different methods of succeeding against their competitors in becoming the world's single law system. These facilities were all hidden from the public eye in order to prevent invasions from rebellion groups and the other law systems.

Near found the slot that perfectly fit the book. He reluctantly placed the book into its rightful place ergo completing the puzzle perfectly painted by Kira.

Kira and L's justices held the most comparisons, making Kira's justice most likely to fall that is if the world truly followed the theory of history repeating itself. Near held no intention of bettering Kira's justice and preventing its downfall when the time came, his intentions were less pure; he hoped to take advantage of Kira's downfall.

Near walked out of Kira's white library and into halls that shared the same theme.

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 **A/N: If the prologue has not made it already obvious, there will be no death note in this fanfic. I have found that most DN Fanfics with a death note result in sharing the same plot. What do you think of the setting I've created? Constructive criticism in the form of a review would be great.**


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Near woke up to the ever-present light in his room.

His room, just like every other room in this facility, was an untainted shade of white. The white light shined by the light bulb gave a sense of fakeness to everything its light touched. There was no light switch forcing everyone into a state of constant brightness; this left a feeling of security but did nothing to help Near sleep better.

Near got off of his bed and changed out of his white pajamas into an equally white outfit similar to bleached scrubs. He took his leisurely time walking through his everyday routine- brushing his teeth, eating a nutritious breakfast, going to educational classes, showering, studying and spending his free time- for there was nothing more to do.

After finishing such mundane acts he made his way back to the library- something that has slowly made its way into his routine. He picked up another history book from the isle he now knew too well then made his way towards an empty corner desk.

He opened the book and stared at the words but did not bother reading them. He constantly tried not to think about why he kept on reading these books when he did not gain anything useful from them? Why was he bothering himself with an impossible feat? Why did he hope to find facts in a book written by someone with a god complex; history is written by the winners and Kira has definitely been winning for the last thirty years? Though, by trying not to think of such questions he was inevitably thinking more about them. Either ways he did not mind much about the question it is the answer that he always falls back to that truly bothers him. He reads books that do not hold the answers he looks for because it gives him a goal, a purpose. Near lived in a world of routine, which not only gave him a sense of security but also a sense of boredom. He needed to feed his mind for if he didn't it would feed on itself and slowly on his soul leaving him an empty shell.

"Finally, I thought you'd never get it."

Near betrayed the books in front of him in order to give his full attention to the laughing blond boy. The boy stood in front of a bunch of desks surrounded by other students.

'He seems to be tutoring them,' analyzed Near and dedicated the rest of his time to further his study of the boy.

"René first realized that there is doubt. That's very much true since you can doubt yourself, you can doubt a fact, and you can also doubt your beliefs. Knowing that doubt exists we can generalize and assert that conscious acts exist, since doubts are a kind of conscious act and so we can conclude that there exist things that present themselves as conscious acts."

The blond used so many excessive and useless motions while explaining; none of his hand gestures did anything to further his explanation. Although the boy's soft features could easily blend easily with the whiteness that took over the place, they didn't and instead he stood out like a billboard forcing people to stare at him in curiosity. The blond boy continued talking about the philosopher. As he did so, kids were entrapped in his words and were trying to force those same words into paper so that they could come back to them later. Behind the fair-haired boy stood a red-head holding a virtual portable game. The boy seemed to care less about what the blond said but simply stayed in support of him.

"The fact that we talk of the conscious act as a topic, a presentation, suggests that we are doing so in first person perspective verifying that without a first person perspective nothing can be conscious. This all concludes that since a first person perspective existing is a conscious act done by a first person perspective then the existence of the person is confirmed."

Near felt as though the blond boy was complicating René's philosophy. René simply stated that because he is able to think then he must exist, something that can be easily understood by his story. René concluded that an evil demon could make him doubt all his beliefs including his existence by making him believe false statements to be facts and so he tries to disapprove the existence of such a demon. He ignored all his former beliefs and in doing so he was certain of one belief and that is that he is thinking since to doubt that you are thinking means that you are thinking. That is how he concluded that for him to be able to think that would mean he existed. Near was certain that the boy knew of René's story since he had a vast knowledge of his philosophy.

'Then why wasn't he using it in his explanation?' Near thought.

A small smile crept onto Near's face in realization. The blond boy wanted to shorten the intellectual gap between him and the rest of the students in order to better benefit the institute. Though, that did not mean he did not wish to be intellectually superior to the students, so his purpose was to help them not lead them to their full potential and understanding.

"In summary, René concluded that since there is a mindful act being done in first person perspective, in his case 'doubt', then there must be someone creating such an act. Cogito ergo sum, I think therefore I am."

Near recognized the fiery boy as Mello. Mello excelled in his studies and was always passionate about everything- a quality that amazed Near but had also deemed as tiring. Though, with such admirable quality came his complete devotion to Kira. Mello had no doubt in Kira's ways but his actions made it seem that he believed everyone else did. Any sense of curiosity brought up by questions against Kira's ways caused Mello to swiftly switch into attack mode, attacking the curious soul with arguments and accusations that belittled the other. This quality alarmed Near into staying away from Mello.

"So basically, what René Descartes proved is that the act of thinking guarantees the existence of the self," Mello finished

'That statement is false,' Near thought to himself.

Suddenly all the children huddled around Mello turned around to stare at Near with eyes filled with surprise and fear- for him. Near was dumbfounded at why they would be scared for him; that is until his eyes fell upon the angry glare shot towards him by none other than Mello.

"What did you say?" Mello shouted not in questioning but rather with the purpose of calling Near out.

With that outburst Near realized that he had not kept his statement to himself but had voiced it out loud enough for everyone, including Mello, to hear.

'Well, there is no backing out of this now,' Near _actually_ thought to himself this time around.

" Your statement is false; René Descartes tried to prove that the act of thinking guarantees the existence of the self but his theory was wrong and so he proved nothing"

Mello's glare got fiercer- if that is even possible- as he stomped his way towards Near. Near had to restrain himself from covering his face with his arms in protection of a punch he knew would be coming his way. Near waited for a punch that never came.

"His philosophy was not wrong, in order for someone to be able to think they must exist. I think therefore I am. What's flawed about that?"

Near was amazed at the fact that thee impulsive boy staring directly at him was keeping a level head. This was a rare occasion and Near was going to use it to initiate a _safe_ debate with Mello.

"Thinking alone doesn't necessarily provide solid proof that someone exist. Thinking can be present under the illusion of thought. A person cannot think himself into existence."

"Thoughts are self referential and so as long as there is thought then there must be someone thinking them."

" The philosophy, 'I think, therefore I am' does not prove that thought is real, only that constructing a thought proves ones existence. If the thought one has perceived is not real then how could it possibly prove that person's existence?"

"If the mind truly believes something to be true, then to the mind itself it is. If you truly believe in the existence of god then to you at that given moment he is real"

"But if someone were to think he is a psychopath that doesn't make him a psychopath; it actually serves in proving that the person in fact is not a psychopath since psychopaths do not believe they are psychopaths."

Mello surprised Near by grabbing his shirt and pulling him closer. Mello seemed as angry as he did when Near accidently interrupted his tutoring.

"Are you calling me a psychopath?"

Near was dumbstruck at how Mello was able to come up with such a false analysis of what he said.

"I did not say that. I simply tried to prove that 'just because one thinks something to be real does not mean it is' through giving an example. Another example would be that just because you think you are the best doesn't mean you are."

That last comment was meant to imply doubt in Mello's intellect and Mello was not one to miss the hint. Mello raised the hand that was not grabbing Near's shirt with the purpose of punching the younger boy.

"Be careful Mello, Kira sentences all wrong doers to death."

Realization spread across Mello's face as he lowered Near and composed himself. Near watched as Mello left the library not sparing him another glance with his loyal red-head close behind him.

Finally feeling as though he was safe, Near let out a breath only to find that the students formerly being tutored by Mello were now staring at him. There was no longer a purpose for Near to stay at the library and so he made his exit completely forgetting about the book he picked out earlier in the process. Near left with a feeling of excitement and adrenaline, something he never felt nor believed he would ever feel.

Near walked aimlessly around the halls trying to forget about the debate he had with Mello. It wasn't that he didn't like the debate, it's because he loved it. Arguing with Mello was entertaining and mind consuming. It offered him a source out of his boredom, which is why he feared it. He would soon get addicted to debating with Mello and with something so great as his mental stability dependent on someone as unstable as Mello, he would be left vulnerable to breakage.

An annoying bell similar to that of a school bell rescued Near's attention from being drawn to far into the fierce boy. The bell would sound innocent to anyone but the students and workers in the facility knew better. The bell warned them of visitors.

Near quickly made his way through the halls trying to reach his room. Everyone, except those residing in it and Kira, believed the facility to be a simple boarding school; that way Kira's enemies would not think of attacking it. Though by hiding under the pretense of being a simple school, the school board would occasionally come and check on it to see that no rules have been broken. When that happened the students were to return to act like normal children by playing.

Near finally reached his room. His room was impersonal, just like all the other rooms; this made it easier for the room to be given to another child once the former child was 'sent away'. Kira kills children that have a rebellious streak, do not fully agree with Kira's teachings or do not act the part of normal children when people visit.

Near opened a white box that was placed in the middle of the room to make it seem fuller. He chose to play with the dominos since they were black and the most contrasting to the white theme Kira has forced them into. He started to lay one block after another with every block he placed down the visitors' voices began to fade.

The key of acting natural was not to act nor was it to play naturally, as he was supposed to do, but it is to distract yourself in your own mind. Near tried to focus on doing something he liked, which is how he looked natural while others assumed he was playing. His mind brought his thoughts back to the debate he had with Mello. There were so many things Mello could've said in order to win the argument, a fact if Mello knew would cause him to go into a fit. Mello could have simply stated what he had taught the other students during his tutoring session and that is 'that since a first person perspective existing is a conscious act done by a first person perspective then the existence of the person is confirmed.' Since Mello was irrational and in a hurry to prove his point, he had made many flawed and arguable points.

Near's train of thought was brought into an abrupt stop once he heard the badly hidden ruckus created by the students. Near would've ignored it if he hadn't heard the words 'sent away' being uttered by one of the kids. Near left his room assuming that the visitors had left since all the children were out. Near walked into a crowded hallway filled with loud whispers. Near did not want to ask who was sent away but simply stood awkwardly hoping to hear fragment of others' conversation and picking up the name of the student that was sent away.

"Near," a short girl with two blonde ponytails called out to him, "did you hear? Mello got sent away"

'Of all people to be sent away, why Mello? Mello was devoted to Kira.'

Near's mind would not let him fall into an endless hole of insensibility and so it assembled a perfect reason. Mello was devoted to greatness not Kira and if Kira were to be reduced in Mello's eyes he would find no reason to follow him.

Near needed more reasoning, more proof, to why Mello was sent away. He looked around until he spotted Mello's loyal red-head leaning on a wall while playing his video game. Near continued staring hoping he could remember a name to the boy so that he could go up to him and interrogate him on why he thought Mello was sent away. After a good couple of minutes of his brain's inability to bring forth a name to the owner of the red hair, he walked towards him finding there no reason to wait for something that won't happen.

"I'm Matt," the boy said surprising Near, "I could feel you staring at me hoping to ask me something and I guess you didn't have the audacity to do so without knowing my name."

Matt, as Near now knew what to refer to him as, had shocked twice and that has only been the second statement he ever heard him say. He had simply thought that the boy was a lost puppy following Mello but there seems to be more to the red head.

"Or did you?"

The boy said lowering his video game and staring directly at Near.

Near was about to ask Matt a question that had not completely been composed in his head when Matt simply stated, "I know you're gonna ask me about Mello. I don't really know why he got sent away; maybe he just got too ambitious and Kira got scared."

Near was more stunned by how calmly Matt was speaking rather than by how similar their conclusions to why Mello got sent away were.

"Look, Mello and I were friends-ish. We simply hanged out cause there was no one else we'd rather hang out with. He's gone now and there isn't much we can do about it."

Matt returned to his video game ending the one-sided conversation. Near was left numb as he walked back to his room.

He had finally found something of interest to him. He had found a brand new toy that he enjoyed and it had been taken away from him.

Near walked into his room with a feeling of determination, to do what exactly? He really did not know. He walked behind the white box only to find that he had built the name 'Kira' with dice while pretending to play. Near sat towards the top of the K and pushed the first dice watching it topple against the next until there were none standing.

'Kira will fall.'

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 **A/N: This chapter was going to be longer but, as you can see, it's pretty long as it is. There wasn't much action in this chapter either but I swear the next one will be more interesting. Constructive criticism would be great or you can just tell me what you thing of the story so far.**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Near placed another dice on top of his dice tower.

With the amount of dice he planned on stacking he would soon have to stand up to reach the tower's desired height. Standing up and other physical activities have been reduced to a minimum in Near's life. No one could ever claim that Near was ever an athletic human being but he did wander around every now and then, that is until he lost the drive to do even that.

It has been years since Mello was sent away, but it had only taken a couple of weeks after that event for Near to move on from it. That's not completely true as he was affected by the situation and the affect is still apparent; he simply became indifferent to the situation.

Mello was a toy that Near instantly favored but he was taken away and there was nothing Near could do about it. Kira was an adult that forcibly took his toy and threw it away. Defying the adult would not return his toy and all he could do was play with other toys.

Near had kept to himself and avoided conversations with others by staying in his room. He spent his time playing with toys and creating different scenarios in which Kira would fall. None of the scenarios held a story in which Near burned down Kira reign for Near had no desire to do so. Near didn't hope for Kira's fall, he simply knew that it was inevitable and he wanted to be prepared.

Near didn't hope because hope is a drug for the dreamers. Once they run out of it they will turn into crazed maniacs much worse than those who never had hope to begin with.

A persistent bell forcibly pulled Near out of the world his mind had safely conjured for him. _Visitors_ , Near reminded himself. Just as he was about to plunge himself back into the makeshift world of dolls, dice and dominos he realized that this wasn't the visitors bell.

This bell had a panicked rhythm to it. It was an alarm; someone was attacking the facility. To confirm Near's conclusion, screams and gunshots were soon heard.

Near's heartbeat started to race, as he looked around frantically. As much as he was bored and dissatisfied with life that was not a good enough excuse for him to be content with being killed.

Near tried to stand up only to have his numb legs, that came to be useless from sitting all day, be crushed by his upper body as he fell down. Footsteps got louder as they got closer. Near sat himself upright and started to play with his dolls. _Maybe dying in my own world wouldn't be so bad_ , Near thought.

Near's door opened dramatically. Near did not look at the person that invaded his room for he was not courageous enough to stare at death while it did its job.

The person got closer to Near and all Near could do in response was pick up his Kira doll and have it throw white blocks at all the monsters.

"Near?"

The voice was familiar but its tone was wrong; the voice was owned by someone irrational and passionate it had no place being unsure and worried.

"It is you," the voice continued pestering Near in which he responded by ignoring it once more.

This did not play well for now the voice's owner held a gun to Near's head.

"Dammit, look at me!"

 _This is bad_ , Near thought. Maybe living too long in his own mind has caused him to be unable to differentiate between reality and his own imagination.

The gun being pressed to Near's head started to shake and so Near took a chance and looked up at his perpetrator.

Golden hair surrounding a feminine face which held two blue eyes that stared deeply into Near. _This can't be happening_ , Near thought. _I must be hallucinating._

Near stopped questioning his sanity once he detected a brutal red scar across the other's face. _Why would I imagine him in such state?_ Near thought. The fact that Near did not know the source of the scar gave him hope to believe that maybe the male in front of him was not a figment of his imagination.

"Mello?" Near questioned with a voice that has not been heard nor used in a long time.

At the sound of his name, Mello's eyes softened. The two boys stared at each other with endless questions that neither knew nor had the courage to answer.

The silent yet not awkward encounter between the two ended when Mello slammed his gun on Near's head. The action caused Near to be swallowed into darkness. This was fine because darkness was not nothingness and darkness has an end while nothingness does not.

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 **Yes, I know. This is a very short chapter but at least I updated the story.**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

 **A/N: Yes, I'm very much aware of the lack of updates. I truly apologies to anyone avidly reading this fanfic. I have been very busy this summer and I can't say this school year will be any better. I might not constantly update though this story will not be going on hiatus. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

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Near woke up to a different kind of darkness.

The darkness failed to do its job of blinding people for Near could easily mark the outline of most of the things in the room he was in. From what he could see, the room was small; only having enough space for a bed, a closet and a large cupboard without making the place look overly crowded.

The darkness felt dirty. He couldn't identify the reason behind that conclusion. Maybe it was the fact that it was translucent and allowed sight. Maybe it was the unpatched ceiling and holes in the wall that served as a background to the place. Maybe it was the numbing pain he felt coursing through his body and the haziness in his head. Though, Near decided to put the blame on a combination of all those reasons.

Near looked around the room finding it quite familiar or rather it gave him a familiar feeling. The place was dark yet comforting. The room's paint job seemed to be crumbling off the walls showing how old the place truly was yet the room's content was well kept and takin care of. The room seemed contradictory though that did not make it seem unusual. It reminded him of…

'Mello,' Near's thoughts shouted at him in annoyance for temporarily forgetting about the events of the night before.

'Was it the night before or have I been here for longer' Near thought to himself. Though, he then reasoned that if Mello had not injected him with sedative drugs and he had simply been blacked out from being hit by the back of a gun then there would be no reason for being blacked out for more than twenty four hours.

With that question resolved another arose, 'what time was it?' There were no windows or clocks in the room to help him figure out the time. Before Near could give much thought to that conundrum, more started crowding his mind.

'Have I been kidnapped?' Near thought only to give a reluctant yes.

'Is he going to kill me?' he soon dismissed that question for if Mello had wanted to do so he would have done it when they first met.

Though the question of why had Mello brought him here, was the question that kept on replaying and caused him the most amount of confusion for he could not bring forth any answers.

Although many things were still not clear to him, Near knew he needed to escape. Since, for Mello to not have been killed by Kira must mean he had escaped ergo betraying Kira; and for him to still be alive must mean he must've done horrible things in order to insure survival.

Near got off of the bed while still holding on to it, testing if he could move without tumbling down. Yes he could do so, though he still felt some dizziness. He walked away with the purpose of escape only to be stopped by a door. He twirled his white locks around his figure as he tried to figure out how to unlock the door without creating too much commotion. Breaking the door was not the smartest option as it would create too much noise and he doubted he had the physical abilities to do so. He decided to try and open it with a bobby pin; that is if he could find one lying around in this room somewhere.

Before he went on his expedition of trying to find a bobby pin, Near decided to test his luck. He pulled down the door handle and a small click made it clear to him that the door was unlocked. Near could not dwell in his excitement for he still needed to escape undetected. He pushed the door slowly and exited the room.

After exiting the room, Near had stepped into a sitting area with couches facing opposite of him and a small kitchen to his right. There were multiple black doors around him but only one brown one that stood across from him and in the direction of where the couches were facing. Near decided to check the brown door first since it seemed most likely for it to be the exit.

Just as Near was about to walk towards the door, he saw red strands of hair popping out of the couch in front of him. After noticing the hair, Near noticed a bunch of annoying buttons being clicked from the source of the red hair. There was no way for Near to reach the brown door unnoticed with the red head facing it.

Near just then fabricated a plan, he walked towards the kitchen and grabbed a metal mug that was placed on the table after clearly being used. He walked slowly towards the red head holding the mug up high in order to give him enough force to hit the red head. His heart was beating very fast as though it would somehow escape his body. Near feared that his heart beat would alert the red head sitting on the couch of his presence. His hands were sweaty but that only made him harden his grip on the metal mug. As Near was about to hit the red head, he heard one of the black doors being unlocked.

"You're finally up" stated the red head as he turned his head around.

In a moment of panic Near slammed the mug onto the red head's chin which caused him to instantly go unconscious. Before he could make his escape, a familiar voice made him stop in his tracks.

"What the hell are you doing?" shouted a wet blonde that could be identified as not completely naked but half naked simply because of the towel wrapped around the lower part of his body.

Near brought down the metal grip and awkwardly looked at the floor feeling like a kid that just got in trouble for doing something wrong.

Near expected Mello to push him, hit him or even continue shouting at him but the blonde simply rushed towards the couch. He turned around to find the blonde standing next to the red head while stabilizing his head and neck by placing his hands on both sides of the person's head.

"Go get an ice pack from the freezer" the blonde commanded.

Near stood petrified while staring at the blonde.

"Now, Near!" the blonde shouted when his command was not followed.

Mello's use of his name caused Near to come back to his senses and forced him out of his short lived role as a bystander. Near rushed towards the kitchen and then opened the freezer's door. He pulled out the ice molds only to be faced with emptiness because of the lack of ice. He then pulled out the most reasonable substitution, a bag of frozen vegetables. Near returned to where the red head laid unconscious.

"Just place it over his chin" Mello stated in a tone much gentler then the one he used before.

Just as he was about to do what was asked of him, he finally got a good view of the red head and recognized him as Matt. Near place the bag of frozen vegetables on Matt's chin and then took a few steps back waiting for what would happen next.

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Mello asked in a defeated tone.

Near stood quietly for a couple of seconds in a moment of guilt until the reason for his actions made its way back to his head. He was escaping; there was no need for him to feel bad about hurting one of his captives.

"I knew you were socially incompetent but who hits someone else with a freaking metal mug?" The blonde's tone got angrier by the second.

Near, too, started getting madder by each word the blonde was saying. Near could not believe that Mello was trying to pin the blame on him. He was the one being kidnapped.

"And after I went through all that trouble of rescuing you!"

"Rescuing me?"

"What the hell? Yes, rescuing you. If someone else had been there before I had, you would have been shot without a second thought."

"So if it wasn't for your 'second thought' I would have been dead? Changing your mind about killing me can hardly be defined as rescuing me."

"You're here and you're safe but you can't even muster a simple thank you."

"There is no reason for me to thank you."

"Ugh, you know what; I don't even have time for this"

With that statement the blonde gave Matt his undivided attention. Near stood staring at the two with a mixture of anger and confusion. He walked back to the room he had woken up in and sat on the bed.

Mello had been confusing as ever and with that Near felt drained. Near twirled his hair as he tried to decipher the enigma which is Mello's very being. His encounter with the blonde and his red head side-kick added more questions on his mind. Though what could be said for now is that Mello had justified himself by stating that he was rescuing Near which meant Near had free will and could leave whenever he wanted to.

With that conclusion, Near placed his head on the pillow and hoped to regenerate with a nap.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Near woke up later that day less confused. Well, _less_ isn't the right word to describe his confusion since although he now knew where he was, he did not know why he was there. He wasn't less confused his confusion was simply different this time around.

His aimless thoughts came to an abrupt stop when he heard his stomach growl. Near was starving. He could not remember the last thing he ate, not even back in the institute- since getting food and eating required movement and he tried to minimize his movement.

Near slowly pulled down the door handle hoping no one was in the living area. He wanted to get food from the kitchen and go back to the room without having to interact with another human being. Once he opened the door he heard the rhythmic pressing of buttons. Near's hopes were crushed.

"You're finally awake, sleepy head," Near could sense the smile through the red head's cheerful tone.

Matt was sitting exactly where he had when Near had slammed the metal mug onto his chin. He did not face Near and was playing on his video game. The situation was a perfect example of a déjà a vu, with the exception of the TV playing the news in the background.

"Hey, check it out. We're on the news."

Matt's easiness almost convinced Near that he truly hadn't injured him. Though that was not the case, since when he got closer to Matt he could see the bruise that spread over Matt's chin because of his uncharacteristic aggressive action.

Near tried to forget about his previous action by focusing on the TV. The news channel showed the outside of a large white building with the header being 'Mafia attacks one of Kira's boarding schools and massacres all its residents.'

The sight was unnerving. Dead bodies were everywhere. Sirens were accompanied by the entrance of the police. Paramedics were trying to find someone with a chance of being saved but God has seemed to label them all as dead.

Near wondered what would happen if they found out that he was alive. Would Kira welcome him back as the only survivor? Or would he label him as a traitor for being associated with Mello? The only things he was truly sure of were that everyone in the institute is dead and that Mello and Matt have become part of the Mafia.

His stomach growled once more but this time with a larger audience. Matt broke his intense concentration on his video game to stare Near's stomach and give a small light-hearted laugh.

Mello decided to walk into the living room at that very moment. He wore a tight leather black outfit that seemed to forcibly try to remove the image of a young blond dressed in what looked like white scrubs from Near's head.

"What are you laughing about?"

The blond directed his question at Matt, who chose to ignore it.

"You're going out now?"

"Yup"

"Maybe you should take Near with you. You know, so you can catch up."

Mello stared at Near for the first time after the little incident earlier. Mello's stare was so penetrating; it made Near feel like a prey waiting to be attacked by his predator. Near broke the eye contact he had with Mello in favor of staring at the ever-happy red head. He disliked being spoken for but he didn't mind leaving the cooped up apartment.

"You could take him to a café, I bet he's hungry," Matt added on with a chuckle.

Near's stare towards Matt became hostile after that embarrassing statement.

"Fine," Mello's defeated words surprised the room's two other occupants. "Just don't act weird"

Mello grabbed a thick brown jacket from on top of the couch and threw it towards Near. He, then, walked expecting Near to follow.

Near followed Mello outside of the apartment and into the just as unappealing hallway. They came across both an elevator and a staircase, but chose to take the staircase reasoning that walking awkwardly together was better than standing awkwardly together.

Once they reached the ground floor they were greeted by a black motorcycle. Mello climbed on top of it and waited for Near to do the same. Near eyed the motorcycle hoping if he continued to do so it would turn into a safer mean of transformation.

"You could walk if you want to."

Near glared at Mello after that comment but settled on climbing on top of the motorcycle as well. Near was not quite sure where to hold on to but that dilemma was solved when Mello guided Near's arms around his waist.

"Don't fall," Mello stated moments before he sped off.

Near closed his eyes tightly. He was well aware that it would be wiser of him to identify his surroundings but the adrenaline rushing through him was not in any way enjoyable.

They finally reached what seemed like a shopping center. Near got off the motorcycle the moment Mello stopped driving wondering whether walking would've been a smarter choice. Mello chained his motorcycle around a light pole and then they made their way towards a cafe.

The two made an awkward combination as they walked, with Mello dresses in all black whilst Near in all white- except for the brown jacket. Everyone else dressed in a wide range of colors and seemed happy to ignore the political war the world is currently in.

They walked into a scarcely populated café and took a window seat. A waitress handed them both a menu. Near skimmed through the menu while partially gazing at Mello- who was ignoring the menu laid in front of him while staring out the window.

After a couple of minutes with no interaction between the two, the waitress came back asking if they were ready to order.

"Order anything you want, I'll just have some hot chocolate"

"OK, I'll have the scrambled eggs on toast"

After the waitress left, Mello resumed to stare outside the window which simply irritated Near.

"You seem distant. Has coming back from the dead left you dispassionate?"

Mello did not respond. Somehow Mello was alive and yet he was not the same boy that invaded Near's mind for so long. Near wanted the fierce boy which was always on attack mode. He wanted the intellectual boy that's conversations never left him feeling dull. He wanted the irrational boy that believed passion was the key to success. Yet, he was now left with an empty shell. Near finally got his favorite toy back only to find out that it was broken.

"May I ask you a couple of questions?"

Near asked though after a while of no response from the blond he thought his question was not heard and was wondering whether he should repeat it.

"You can but I don't guarantee an answer."

Near took that response as a yes.

"How are you alive?"

He was met with silence.

"Why were you sent away?"

Silence again.

"Why did you attack the institute?"

"Why didn't you kill me?"

Near stopped waiting for replies in between his questions since he knew there would be none.

"Why did you join the Mafia?"

Mello finally unglued his eyes from the window and looked at Near in surprise.

"How did you know I joined-"

"The news"

Mello's face was decorated by a small smile.

"They're a stool helping me get closer to my goal," was Mello's only explanation and was soon followed with him staring through the window.

At that moment the waitress brought their orders and said some words which they both ignored. Near stopped asking question for he knew enough for now. Mello had a goal meaning he still had a passion. Near's toy was not broken.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Near stood by the brown door which held the apartment he considered to be his prison behind it.

After they finished their meals at the café, they had rushed back to Matt and Mello's apartment. Mello was currently putting away his motorcycle and had told Near to go to the apartment ahead of him. Near had complied but now stood in front of the door leading to the apartment questioning what he was about to do.

'Why am I willingly returning to my prison?'

'Well, if I am going back by my own will then can I still be defined as a prisoner?'

'They don't treat me like a prisoner.'

Near had reasoned that he wasn't in fact Mello's prisoner; though, that didn't mean he wished to stay with Mello and Matt anymore. He's been there for a day yet he still hasn't found any answers to why he was with them in the first place. Plus they were associated with the mafia- the most dangerous and hated organization that is trying to become the world's single law enforcers- and Near was not willing to be killed because he was accompanying the mysterious pair that kidnapped him. And quite frankly, he felt awkward in the presence of the two as though he were third wheeling their duo.

Just as Near was about to leave, he turned around and was faced with Mello raising an eyebrow in questioning. As realization of what Near was about to do dawned upon Mello, his eyebrow was lowered and instead scrunched up to intensify the glare he was currently giving Near.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Near backed away until his back hit the door. He felt like a prey under Mello's glare and instantly knew he was going to get attacked by his blonde predator. As Near readied himself for the impact of Mello's fist, he saw Mello's eyes soften and look at the doorknob as though he were pointing at it with his eyes. Near realized that Mello was giving him another option; he could simply enter the room and he would be spared a punch from Mello while his attempt at escape would be left to be forgotten. Near took his scapegoat and pulled down the doorknob as he made his way into the apartment. He now had no doubt in his mind that although this apartment could not exactly be called a prison, he was definitely Mello's prisoner.

Once Near entered the apartment, he first spotted Matt sitting in the same position as he had in Near's last memory of him with the exception of the cigarette between is lips.

'Does he just sit all day and play video games?'

Near felt disgusted by such a mundane habit, only to be reminded of how he spent most of his days at Kira's facility playing with his toys. Near's thoughts were interrupted by the natural movement of Matt blowing smoke out while holding the cigarette in one hand and continuing playing his game with the other hand.

"So how'd it go?"

'Quite boring,' Near thought but knew the question was not aimed at him and so opted to stay quiet.

"Shit!" Near was surprised by Mello's response. He turned around to see Mello's face red with anger.

'How can someone's emotions change so quickly?'

Near made the smart move of staying clear of Mello's path so not to come face to face with the outcome of Mello's anger. Matt, on the other hand, seemed not to notice Mello's mood change or maybe he didn't care because he continued playing his game on the couch only to have a cushion slammed onto his face moments later.

Near walked towards a small dining table placed near the entrance of the Kitchen; which gave him a safe distance from Mello yet a perfect view of his outburst. Near found a deck of cards placed on the edge of the table. With the knowledge that the deck of cards was not there before he left, Near started stacking the cards.

"I'm guessing she didn't show up." Matt's statement led him to have another cushion slammed onto his face.

"No shit Sherlock!"

'So, Mello was expecting someone to show up. And that person was supposed to be a girl,' Near analyzed.

"I can't believe she flaked. Does she not know how important this is?"

'It couldn't have been a date or otherwise he wouldn't have brought me along.'

"Hey, maybe something came up."

"Just, shut up!"

Their conversation was ended as Mello walked towards one of the couches and started punching it aimlessly.

'Did Matt not realize that Mello knew something must have come up and that he was complaining simply to let out some steam," Near thought rather annoyed by Matt's calm, clueless nature.

It was Near's bad luck which caused him to make eye contact with Mello in the midst of his tantrum. Mello walked slowly towards Near, making his way around the couches. Near would not have panicked as much if it weren't for Matt putting away his game to watch what Mello might do and intervene if necessary.

Near closed his eyes ready for the impact that never came. He did, though, hear a loud thump and feel a breeze sweep across his face. Near opened his eyes to see his card tower reduced to cards laid randomly on the floor and Mello marching away to his room.

'Well that was uncalled for.'

It has been days of a similar routine. Near would accompany Mello to the café only to have Mello stare out the window while Near ate. Then they would return back to the apartment where Mello would throw a fit.

One day, Near had decided that he too would stare out the window looking for something out of place, for whatever Mello was looking for. Though without knowing exactly who Mello was looking for, his efforts were pointless. The only constants he could see through the window were a dirty-blonde painter, an old lady feeding birds and a young female reading a different book on the same bench every day. Everyone else was interchanging; either they had a different routine each day or they simply didn't come to this spot often.

Near was currently seated at the dining area completing a puzzle. Every day a new toy or game presented itself on the dining table after he came back with Mello. He assumed Matt was the one bringing them; though he couldn't be sure for all he knew it could be that another person was associated with Mello and Matt and decided to place these items on the table.

Near was not planning on accompanying Mello to the café today considering that he no longer learnt anything new or useful from going on that little trip. He figured that staying at the apartment might give him the chance to explore Mello's room while he wasn't there.

That plan was never initiated since Mello walked out of his room and stared at Near when he didn't get up and walk with him towards the exit.

"Is there a reason for you to still be sitting?"

"I wasn't aware I _had_ to accompany you to the café every day."

"Nice try, I'm not leaving you here alone."

Near glanced over at Matt expecting him to say something like 'Mello shouldn't worry with me around to watch Near.' When no response came from Matt, Near was sure that Matt went off somewhere when they left.

Near got up and followed Mello reasoning that one more day wasted was not a big issue considering that most of his life has been wasted.

When the pair finally made it to the café, Near was playing with his food creating a house by pushing around scrambled eggs and, on the other side of the table, Mello was staring intently outside the window. Near was not too absorbed in his art to miss Mello's eyes glisten and his lips form a smile. Mello placed a bunch of paper money on the table and swiftly made his way out of the café. Near's surprise left him frozen in his position as he stared at Mello's sudden action. His curiosity faded away his surprise and he soon followed Mello outside the café.

Near walked towards Mello- who was now sitting across the blonde painter. Near's mind could not put a reason for the sudden turn of events. Mello pulled Near's sleeve forcing him to take the seat next to him.

'Wait a second, were there always to seats in front of the painter.'

"Done," the painter said before Near could dwell on the presence of the new chair.

'That voice sounds familiar.'

'Did she just wink at me?'

'Her hair seems to be a couple of shades lighter than the days before.'

'How did she finish the painting so quickly?'

Near's mind was consumed by questioned that formed every second. Though, he did not have the chance to find an answer for any of them since Mello was holding the canvas with one arm and pulling Near with his other hand.

"Hold this," Mello commanded as he handed the canvas to Near.

It was the first time Near saw the painting and 'surprised' was not a strong enough emotion to describe what he felt at that moment. The painting was of Mello staring outside the window while Near played with his food.

'She painted us while we were in the café.'

Near's eyes expanded by a couple of centimeters as he realized that Mello was waiting for her.

'He was waiting for this,' Near realized as he stared at the painting he held in his arms.

When they finally made it to the apartment building, Near's curiosity and excitement did not subdue. Mello unlocked the apartment door and Near realized that before this moment the apartment door had always been unlocked. They walked into the apartment and to Near's surprise Matt was not there.

They had come back at least half an hour earlier than they usually do and it seemed that Matt was still out doing whatever he does.

While Near was staring at the empty couch that seemed to still have Matt's imprint on it, Mello had grabbed a butter knife from the kitchen. Before Near could stop him, Mello was scraping off the painting with the butter knife.

"What are you doing?"

"This is a water-based painting over an oil painting, it'll just fleck right off."

"You are an admirer of art?"

"Nope."

Although Mello exclaimed he did not like art, it seemed he was right about the water-color over oil painting because under the painting there was a bunch of letters merged together into incoherent words.

"A code."

"Well done, Einstein," Mello said sarcastically whilst not giving Near eye contact.

"Caesar Shift Cipher?" Mello smiled genuinely at Near yet still eye contact was not made.

A Caesar shift Cipher is a code in which each letter is actually meant to be read as another. Yet, there are multiple ciphers that could be used to decipher the code and one must know which one was used to make the code first in order to be able to replace the letters with the right ones.

"Which cipher is it?" Mello stopped deciphering the code to stare at Near and give him a devilish smile.

"Now why would I tell you that?" Near was left speechless.

Mello continued deciphering the code while Near stared at him in silence. Mello's eyes grew in size as he dropped the canvas.

"I'm assuming the message was not pleasant?"

Near did not mind Mello's despair until Mello rushed into his room leaving the door open. Near followed Mello into his room only to find Mello packing.

"What are you doing?"

"Go pack."

"Mello, what did the code say?"

"Near, just go pack!"

"I will not do anything until you calm down and tell me what is going on."

Near was rather angry at this point. He hated being left in the dark and he no longer was going to willingly stand for it. Near's short lived moment of confidence was swept away once Mello grabbed his shoulders tightly and stared into his eyes showing actual fear.

"They know I saved you. The Mafia knows that you, a Kira follower, is with me. They're gonna kill us!"

Near was washed with a wave of panic. He rushed to his room only to realize that he didn't have much belongings and his packing was finished in a few minutes.

Near returned to Mello's room, which was very neat in contrary to its habitant. He decided that Mello might slip out some information while he was in a state of frenzy.

"Are you sure they'll kill us?"

"Yes, that's what the code implied."

"Are you certain of its validity?"

"Yes, Linda might be annoying but I can trust her."

"Linda?"

Instantly he received a memory of a short girl with blonde pigtails sending him smiles and kind words when he walked across a white platform. He remembered the feeling he felt when the same girl had first told him that Mello was sent away.

"Yeah, I can't believe you don't remember the only person that was actually nice to you at Kira's facility."

Near felt ashamed for not remembering her. Though in his defense, after Mello was sent away he rarely left his room and so there was no way for him to know what happened to Linda. This excuse did not erase his embarrassment and so he chose to change the topic.

"When do you think they'll come here?"

"I don't know. I doubt that they'll actually find this place."

"What?" Mello stopped to stare at Near's outburst.

"They're not coming here?"

"No they're not."

"Then why are we leaving this place?"

"I thought you'd be happy to leave this place." Near dismissed Mello's sad smile.

"I'm quite serious."

"I thought you would've figured it out by now." Near ignored Mello's attempt to downgrade him.

"It's quite obvious that I don't know what is going on in your head and I don't think I ever will so could you for once explain yourself." Mello huffed in defeat.

"We're leaving before Matt comes back." Near did not know what to expect but he never thought Mello would distrust Matt.

"You think Matt might betray you?"

"God, no! Don't you ever assume Matt is untrustworthy," Near accomplished to anger Mello once more, "The Mafia don't know Matt's associated with me and I want to leave it that way."

"You're leaving Matt without even giving him a voice in any of this."

"Don't say it like that. Matt is my friend and the last thing I'd ever want to do is hurt him."

With that being said, Mello burnt the canvas in the sink and then washed the flames that brightened the room. Near couldn't help but wonder what he was to Mello. It was obvious they weren't friends considering that he didn't mind harming him and would choose Matt's safety over his any day. Though, he must be _something_ since Mello did save him rather than kill him or leave him to be killed by another Mafia member.

Mello was done packing and was about to leave the apartment when he noticed that Near was standing frozen while staring down at his shoes.

"Near?"

"What am _I_ to you?"

"What?"

When Near didn't further explain himself, Mello put down his bag and walked towards him.

"Are you serious?"

"Matt is your friend, so what am I? Why didn't you kill me?"

"You looked like you could be useful? I don't know why I ever thought that but yeah I did at the moment."

"That's a rational reply."

"And?"

"Mello's never rational in moments that need fast thinking. He's impulsive."

"Are you saying that I'm lying?"

"You might've thought I was useful but not at the moment. So yes, I do think you're lying though not completely."

"Fine," Mello sighed in defeat "I just couldn't kill you. It just didn't seem right. I just felt like you should be by my side helping me figure this out."

"Like a partner." Mello snorted.

"You wish."

The topic was left at that and the two left the apartment never to look back at it.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Near stood as a giant in the middle of a miniature city made out of Mentos. To be accurate, the city was simply the diner Mello constantly took him to and its surroundings. He stared at his construction wondering how his observation skills had missed noticing that the artist had not been the same that day.

Near being used to escaping reality through his miniature construction, never truly knew when doing so was inappropriate; and right now was not the appropriate timing to act anything but 'normal.' Near had managed to create his own little universe on the reception desk of the Motel using complimentary Mentos that were offered in a bowl. This did not sit well with Mello since people were staring and the last thing he wanted was to stand out too much in fear somehow the Mafia would find them.

Mello had just finished paying for their room, which they planned to stay in for three days, and was in the process of signing the papers while the receptionist got their key. As Mello finished the 'K' on the fake alias, Mark, which he used to check them in the Motel, he elbowed Near causing a domino effect resulting in Near flinching and accidentally breaking down his Mentos creation. Everyone in the Motel's lobby- which to be fair weren't many- stopped what they were doing and stared at the commotion. Near froze in his place, he was surprised at the escalation of things for he was simply analyzing the flaws in his observation skills moments ago and now he stood in a pool of Mentos.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

Near's focus shifted from the mess he was currently in and onto the red faced angered blonde.

'Is his face red because of anger or embarrassment,' Near wondered.

"Can't you act normal!"

It seemed to Near, that there was no way to ever be spared Mello's rants and it would be easier to simply become accustomed to them.

Near's lack of response seemed to feed Mello's anger ergo making Mello push Near aggressively.

"Just sit on the couches and do nothing," Mello said referring to the red couches that were close enough for Mello to see him but not close enough for Near to hear Mello.

Near made his way towards the couches reasoning this was better than causing a larger commotion and much better than cleaning up the Mentos.

Near sat on the couches in front of a woman with long black hair and hazel eyes that were concentrating awfully hard on him. Near was not fond of the lady and decided to instead focus on being accustomed to the Motel just in case they needed to escape. The lobby was simply a large room with one entrance which also served as an exit, the reception being right next to the entrance, a sitting area consisting of four large couches, a gift shop and a door leading to a kitchen- to his surprise there were no tables or chairs of some sort hinting that the kitchen belonged to a restaurant.

'Strange,' Near thought. He wasn't quite sure if this was something normally found in Motels since all he knew about them was what he has read in Kira's library.

Near found that there was no harm in investigating it, and so got up to do so.

"Sir," Near heard the lady say impatiently.

'She must've been trying to get my attention for a while,' Near realized. He looked at her implying that she has his attention now.

"Is that man hurting you?"

Near was confused for a while, only to realize moments later that 'that man' she was referring to was Mello. Near sat back down finding her much more interesting than the random Kitchen in the Lobby.

"I'm a former detective and an acquaintance of L, I can help you out of whatever mess you're in."

'An acquaintance of L,' L was dead or at least that's what everyone believed and even if he wasn't, did she not realize how dangerous it is to admit to being in contact with L in a region that primarily supports Kira.

"I can help you escape to a better place," she said with a reassuring smile.

Near realized that he could actually become independent, no longer forced to stay by Kira or Mello. He could finally identify himself as no longer a prisoner, a free man. Not only that, but he could meet L, that is if the lady was actually telling the truth, and with meeting L he would be presented with infinite knowledge and the truth to how his reign fell.

"Ow!" Near looked towards the direction of someone showing his distaste to pain, only to find that 'that someone' was Mello who had bumped his head on the reception desk after trying to get up from picking up the Mentos. Near showed his amusement through a simple smile, it was funny to him how Mello's bad guy demeanor could disappear so easily.

"Karma," the lady said gaining Near's attention once more.

"No, if Karma was actually valid and justice is done by nature than a law enforcement wouldn't be needed," Near spoke to the lady for the first time.

She seemed shocked to hear Near say that. Near assumed she thought he was a young helpless teen that needed saving and in turn was not able to produce intellectual thought. The lady soon started laughing after the shock dispersed.

"So what do you say? Would you like to come with me?"

Near looked back at Mello, who was now making his way towards them. No matter how he saw it Near could not deny that Mello had saved him and in doing so Mello was left in bad terms with the Mafia and had to leave Matt behind. Even though Mello was a wildfire in the forest slowing burning everything near him, he was still more predictable than the lady that sat smiling in front of him.

"I'm not leaving 'that man' as you referred to him," Near stated. Though, his statement did not rebuttal her claim of Mello hurting him or the mess she assumed he was in. This did not go unnoticed by the lady as she frowned.

"Take this," she said as she handed him a card "call me if you need anything."

With that, the lady left. Near looked over the card, in italic font ' _Naomi Misora'_ was printed as well as a cell number.

"Who was she?" Mello appeared from behind Near.

"Just some saleswoman," Near failed to elaborate as he flipped the card in his hands repeatedly, hoping something else would appear.

"Well, ok then let's go," Mello said as he walked outside towards their room disregarding the women as unimportant.

'Little did he know' Near thought as a smile graced his face at the leverage he now had over Mello.

Near soon got up and followed Mello.

 **A/N: I know short chapter considering that I haven't updated in a while. Though, I might upload another chapter later today or tomorrow.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Near stood motionless, amazed as the moving stairs dragged him up to the first floor.

Escalators were not foreign to him, they were found all over Kira's institute. They were more efficient and modern than basic stairs; though Near secretly believed that Kira preferred them over stairs because they were more stylish. No escalators were not the source of Near's amazement, it is what they overlooked that astonished the young male.

Near could see a dome filled with people from where he stood on the escalator. The people were all dressed very differently; and just as their styles differed so did their personalities. A bunch of children were playing around a fountain, they jumped, tackled each other and splashed water when they thought no one was looking. A short distance away from the children, stood ladies in plain shirts and brown pants; they all had baby trollies and were huddled around in a circle probably talking about the latest rumor circling around a former friend. A young couple held hands and whispered secrets to each other as though the world cared about their untold love story. Teenage girls giggled as they flipped through magazines. Boys were skateboarding. Couples were kissing. Kids were crying.

Emotions filled such a small crowded place and in that moment it was too much for Near, so he looked away. He decided to look in front of him at the blond boy clicking away on his cellphone careless of anything around him. Mello leaned on the escalator's handrail and seemed to fit perfectly in this jungle of people. Just as everyone else, he acted as though he was alone in such a crowded place. Mello, a person Near knew for constantly breaking rules, was oddly able to always fit in with the crowd. Near was never sure if Mello was faking his actions to fit in or he was just very adaptable, either ways Near was jealous.

Near averted his eyes away from the blond to look around the place again. He found it odd that Mello would bring him to a shopping center when a day ago it seemed like they were running for their lives.

"What is this?" Near finally question Mello's latest actions of bringing them to this place.

Mello put his phone away and with a mocking smile shifted his body to look directly at Near.

"This is a Mall"

"I'm well aware of that. I was questioning why you brought us here."

"Well then you should've phrased your words better. You know people here won't understand you if you keep talking like that"

"I'm not interested in people here. I am interested in the reason behind us being here"

"Well that's obvious; we're going to shop."

Before Mello's answer could fully register in Near's brain, the escalator had come to a stop and they were at their desired floor. Mello walked happily in wide strides with Near rushing to catch up to him.

"Why?"

"Because, Near, you have no sense of fashion. Your white scrubs stick out of the crowd so badly that people are constantly staring. You know we're trying to keep a low profile."

"Low profile? That's ironic since your black demeanor is the perfect embodiment of the word mafia itself and your scar-"

Near was unable to finish his sentence for a ray of black surged a few inches away from his eyes and slammed onto the wall beside him. Redness made it's way across Mello's knuckles and as much as Near wanted to believe that Mello's punch missed him he knew it was simply meant as a warning.

"Don't talk about things you don't understand."

The pair soon entered a store which Near concluded to be a retail store since it was stocked with a wide variety of merchandise of different styles. Near looked around the store and although he was looking at the clothes all he could think about was Mello's sudden outburst.

Near's head was invaded by a sudden pressure and a hanger pocked his eye violently. It seems as though Near's failure at picking clothes had forced Mello to do the task for him.

"That was uncalled for"

"Just try these on," Mello state while refusing to look at Near's direction.

Near made his way toward where signs identified as the dressing rooms. He entered one of the rooms and finally decided to get a good look at what Mello picked out for him.

'He must be joking,' Near thought as he held the clothes away from him as though they were infected.

"Hurry up already," the fiery boy shouted as he banged on the dressing room's door.

Near distastefully yet swiftly wore the clothes that Mello had picked out for him and made his way to show Mello his concoction. Near didn't have the chance to voice his complaint since he was greeted with Mello's uncontrollable laugh.

"I fail to see how this is funny"

"Well that's because you haven't seen yourself in the mirror"

Near made his way toward the closest mirror and instantly felt the desire to frown. Mello had picked out an absurd outfit of black leather pants and a leather jacket that looked awfully familiar to Mello's outfit.

"Near don't you think your black demeanor is the perfect embodiment of the word mafia?"

"You picked out this outfit simply to make that comment?"

"Maybe"

Near sighed but knowing that Mello's revenge was a light-hearted prank was sort of a relief.

"You look like a bunny wearing a leather jacket"

"I couldn't agree more"

The pair was on better terms after that laugh and decided to get more serious about finding Near new clothes. Though after multiple attempt of doing so, it was concluded that Near looked strange in every style available.

"Maybe it's because you're too pale"

"I came to that assumption ten minutes ago"

"Well you should've said something"

"There's not much to do about one's skin tone"

"How about a tan?"

"I'm sensitive to the sun"

"A fake tan?"

"I was under the supposition that Mello was intellectual"

"Shut up! I'll look for something, you just wait in the dressing room"

Near waited for a good fifteen minutes before he heard Mello's random knocking. Mello shoved Near's new outfit the second the dressing room door was opened. Near looked at the outfit that he held in his arms and thought that this might be sufficient.

"Hurry up already; I'm not getting any younger."

With that Near opened the dressing room door and analyzed Mello's face for a response that did not yet escape his lips.

"Eh, good enough"

Near made his way towards the mirror and saw a reflection of himself dressed in a plain white long sleeve button up shirt and light blue jeans.

'Good enough' he thought to himself as he walked towards Mello.

"You can go wait by the cashier while I throw away your old clothes," Mello instructed Near, "that is unless you want to keep the clothes for memory sake"

"That would be idiotic."

"Thought you'd say something along those lines"

Near stood in the crowded line leading to the cashier. Though as he got closer to his turn without Mello having followed him, he started to worry and was looking around for the blond. A strong hand surprised Near as it grabbed him by the back of his collar and dragged him out of the line and to a scarcely populated section of the store. Near was finally let go and was able to face his perpetuator, Mello.

"May I know why you dragged me when you could have called me to come with you like any normal human being would do?"

"Who's Naomi Misora?"

Near stayed quite.

"God dammit, Near. Who the hell is Naomi Misora," Mello repeated as he pulled out the card the lady, who's name Mello was shouting, gave to him yesterday.

Near soon realized his mistake, he had forgot the card in his former outfit's pants pocket.

"Why would I tell Mello that?"

"Ok your officially retarded. We're on the same side yet you can't even trust me."

"And what side is Mello referring to since I don't know who you are associated with right now?"

"Can you stop acting like the victim here? I've risked everything I planned to save you yet your making alliance with other people and without even telling me."

Near was shocked. He was in no way acting like the victim though he did have the right to since he has been forced to blindly follow a destructive person.

"I know you truly believe that you are correct to be angry though saving my life does not give me reason to trust you, it gives me reason to be grateful to you. Mello I think I have the right to know something about what you are doing, since I am certain that following you around is not the safest option for me right now. In all honest, I am quite certain it is the opposite"

"Fine, I'll tell you. But you'll have to tell me who Naomi is afterwards."

"Alright"

"Haven't you ever wondered why Kira never sent you out to the real world? How he never sends anyone out of the institute? How death is the only way out? I mean you're what sixteen already-"

"Eighteen"

"Well that proves my point even more. Kira is trying to construct perfect people so why wouldn't he send these perfect citizens into the world?"

Near had to agree with Mello. With Near being eighteen it would seem logical for Kira to send him into the outside world. He should be allowed to be the perfect citizen Kira himself constructed; though, that was not the case. Near and many other teen occupants of the facility were still that, occupants of the facility, well at least they would have been if the facility still existed. These facts made it clear to Near that Kira had other plans.

"Kira is a dictator"

"So is every other law system"

"Kira is corrupt"

"All humans are corrupts"

"Yes, but Kira is dangerous because he does not realize that"

Near kept quiet for Mello actually had a point.

"Kira sees himself as a god and so he fails to realize his flaws or the fact that he has flaws. Kira painted his world in white and in doing so he wished to symbolically portray the pureness of his reign."

Near looked at his old clothes realizing once more that Mello was right.

"Kira isn't trying to just fix the world by making perfect people, he's trying to make a new world where perfect people can live"

"He's going to commit a genocide"

"Exactly"

Near realized that if Kira starts killing of lots of people, rebellion groups would form and the different law enforcements in different nations would step in to stop Kira.

"There's going to be war"

Near realized he wasn't ready for war. He didn't know the first thing about fighting. The people in the dome soon came to mind, and he realized that no one was ready for war.

"You're going to stop him"

"I'm going to take my revenge," Mello said as he touched the scar on his face.

Near stood quietly as everything slowly sunk in. All the years he had resided in Kira's institute, Near wold think of how he'd live through Kira's downfall never taking into consideration that he might have to live through a war, or die in one.

"Now who's Naomi Misora?"

"I hardly believe it's the time for that."

"Hey, I held my side of the agreement. Your turn"

"I met Naomi Misora yesterday while we were checking in the Motel. She saw your outburst of anger towards me and thought you might have kidnapped me-"

"I doubt she thought I was a kidnapper. Maybe an abusive boyfriend or-"

"She thought I was in danger and wanted to do some legal action in helping me."

Mello looked intentively at Near's poker face to catch any signs of him lying.

"Fine, let's just go pay for your clothes," Mello threw the card in Near's direction and walked towards the cashier. Near caught the card before he could lose sight of it.

'If the world is going to plunge into war, L supporters could be good allies' Near thought as he followed Mello.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Near awoke in the motel room with a sort of enlightened feeling. For once, he knew something concrete about the turmoil going on around him, but that simply filled him with a large feeling of confusion and the need to do something. Near had always felt like the world around him was a covered up construction site; signs and safety warnings created by Kira prevented him from seeing what was being built on the other side. However, he now realizes that he was the construction site covered up, and the outside world was waiting to see what new thing Kira had made. But now that they see the new construction, it is no longer interesting, and Near is uncovered in an old world that has no desire of slowing up to help him catch up.

After dwelling on these new, depressing thoughts, Near finally decided to get out of bed. He followed a strict morning routine to retain some sort of constant is his newly ever-changing life. The routine consisted of brushing his teeth, showering, eating whatever meal Mello thought of leaving for him, and then looking outside the window and drawing what he saw. Near was in no way an artist, but he knew an abundance about geometry to draw a somewhat accurate representation of the cityscape- if it could actually be called that. He did this everyday in order to see what little changes happened around and grasp some sort of control over his life. As this daily routine was slowly coming to an end, the albino turned to look at the ordinary watch decorating the beige wall of the room. It was past nine a.m., yet Mello has not come back. Mello was always gone when Near woke up in the morning, but he was back before nine in order to take Near out to someplace new. The places Mello took him to never seemed to have much of a purpose, except to pick up a nugatory object, but Near was secretly happy to join Mello on these pointless endeavors. The reason for this is that, although Near knew many things, he didn't have accurate representation of what these things were and how they were used in real life, and this was a perfect way to find out. But Mello was very late, and Near was becoming bored.

After what seemed like an eternity, but in reality was only half an hour, Near decided to leave the motel and find a way to entertain himself. Near walked around the town- not knowing if it was considered large or small, but since he had not reached the other side of the town he bet it was the former. As near continued through the streets, he came across a clutters of people that walked and spoke in demeanors that showed their innermost intentions. This form of extreme trust and downright carelessness spiked a sort of panic and paranoia within Near.

'No one would should be that comfortable with their surroundings'

'Maybe this is all an act'

'Am I in danger right now?'

Near needed to see some natural, sinful human nature in order to truly believe that this was real and not some sort of badly played scheme being performed to ambush him. In other term, he needed Mello.

He finally came across a place that peeked his interest; a small brown library on the corner of the street seemed like the perfect place to hide from the few strangers that were so comfortable in their foreign ways that it made Near himself very uncomfortable.

The small library, which he soon found out was not really a library but a bookstore, followed a strict color scheme of brown and beige. Near instantly hated the place. This constant color scheme, which was done to create a homey and cozy environment- at least that's what Mello previously told him-, kept Near on his toes since it had many crooks and crannies that encouraged things to camouflage in. Plus, Near could not comprehend the concept of a bookstore. Why would you want to buy a book if you're only going to read it once? And if you need to read it more than once, then you do not have the intellectual capacity to truly read a book.

Nonetheless, this was an escape from the unnatural feel of the outside world. Near looked around the scarcely populate bookshop and was pleasantly surprised to find that they had books which he had not read before. There were social and history books, which were neither from hundreds of years ago nor filled with Kira supporting propaganda. Near pulled out a fictional story about someone living within L's society; while fictional states have never been his usual choice, it did give an insight on how people viewed L's society during his reign.

Near sat on the floor with one leg tucked under him and the other spread in front of him as he read. It seemed as though most people were generally happy under L's reign, and their major conflicts being their personal day to day mundane problems. However, those of upper class were envious of L, and his anonymity did leave much space for distrust.

As Near continued reading, long blond strings of hair were seen in his peripheral vision.

"Linda?" He asked impulsively.

"Close. It's Linder, Halle Linder," she spoke as she walked towards Near. Although, now that Near could see her clearly he could tell that her features shared little in common with Linda, with the exception of the blonde hair.

"Though, I'm more interested in how you know me."

'I don't,' Near thought but opted to stay quiet since he saw no benefit in proclaiming that.

"Why were you watching me?"

"Not many people would pick up that book."

"I'm not like many people."

"You're not a Kira supporter," Halle stated with a smile that looked like they both shared a secret only known by them.

"And neither are you," her smile broadened.

"Follow me."

He did.

Halle led Near towards a brown door camouflaged perfectly with the walls without trying too hard to do so, reminding Near of why he hated this color scheme. The door lead to a short corridor ending with a spiral staircase. Near started to question his decision as the darkness showed little to what laid ahead, foreshadowing his close future. Though, Near saw no reason to distrust Halle, and even if there were reasons to do so his human rights entitled him to safety considering he has done nothing wrong.

As they reached the end of the staircase, a room filled with notes and maps about Kira was exposed.

"You're a spy," Near stated as he looked from the room to the smirk that fell upon Halle''s lips.

"I never went under the pretense of being a Kira support, so no I'm not a spy"

"Who are you?"

"I thought you knew?" Her smile visibly dropped a bit.

"I never said I did."

"Oh, but I know you, Near."

Near panicked, but the only signs of that were a slight shift in his body towards the staircase.

"We've been studying Kira's so called 'boarding school' for a while now, and although the Mafia's attack put us on a set back, your body never being found was a lead"

"Who do you work for?"

"You're pretty calm," she smiled.

'I'm not,' he thought to himself.

"I work for the UN, and although they don't have much political power anymore, they do have money. They're funding our research on Kira, and if you could help us that would be a milestone."

Near stared at her for a couple of minutes, but could not find traces of lying on her features.

'Should I help her?'

'She's willing to give me so much information in a matter of moments'

'She must have hit a standstill'

His mind conjured many thoughts on the current situation, all of which gave him reason to end whatever 'partnership' he had with Mello in favor of a more in-control situation.

"I'll lead the investigation."

"Of course."

And with those two words a metaphorical handshake was performed.

 **A/N: I feel like I'm barely at the climax of this story, but I have barely any time to write. Though, I am planning on finishing this story.**


End file.
